Policies at the local, regional, and state levels have blocked sufficient new housing from being built. Meanwhile, tens of thousands of people are rushing into the area, looking to take advantage of a booming tech economy. In 2015 alone, the region added over 64,000 new jobs while building only 5,000 new units of housing. The result is not only record-breaking prices, but also increased displacement of long-time lower-income residents, threatening the city’s diverse culture.

It doesn’t have to be this way. Get out to the polls on June 7th and say “YES IN MY BACKYARD” for a San Francisco with enough housing for everyone. You can find your polling place on the SF Elections website.

Below are my recommendations for the election with emphasis on key races that relate to housing and transportation. If you’re in a hurry, there’s a cheat sheet at the bottom with my recommendations for every race in the election. If you have any questions, please reach out on Twitter.

San Francisco Proposition C

VOTE NO. Today, San Francisco requires that 12% of units in any new market-rate housing project be set aside as “Below Market Rate” (BMR) housing, available to individuals and families who earn less than some percent of the the area median income. This is known as Inclusionary Housing. Proposition C would increase the amount of required BMR units in new construction from 12% to 25%.

Double affordability sounds great, so what’s the problem?

Inclusionary Housing is paid for by the housing developer, not taxpayers. A move to requiring 25% BMR, a number “grabbed from thin air” by supporters, increases the overall cost of housing. This will slow down new construction and put even more upward pressure on prices.

A report from the San Francisco Office of Economic Analysis found that Proposition C will cause a decrease of 11-13.5% in housing production and points out that a loss of market-rate housing “harms affordability for all income groups — especially those for which no affordable housing subsidy is provided”.

Democratic Council Central Committee (DCCC)

If you haven’t heard of the DCCC, you’re not alone. Fortunately, Grow San Francisco has a great post explaining what the DCCC is all about and why this election has critical implications for our housing shortage:

There’s an obscure, often overlooked San Francisco election coming up in June: the Democratic committee that runs our local politics. If you know who to vote for, one informed vote for abundant housing will have the impact of hundreds — even thousands — of votes, in every local and state race, for the next 4 years.

The SF YIMBY Party has done the hard work of sorting through the dizzying list of 60 candidates (including10 incumbents) running for 24 seats. They have put together a pro-housing slate, which I recommend following:

Other Races & Cheat Sheet

Below is my full list of recommendations, based on information above and endorsements from regional democratic party leaders and organizations: